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Bills 2023 schedule leaks and release tracker: Buffalo to open on Monday Night Football

Sal Maiorana and Ryan Miller, Rochester Democrat and Chronicle
·5 min read
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The NFL announced Thursday morning that the Buffalo Bills will travel to the Meadowlands to play Aaron Rodgers and the New York Jets in their season opener on Monday, Sept. 11. Kickoff will be 8:15 p.m. on ESPN.

So, right off the bat, the Bills have an enormous test against a Jets team that many believe could be in position to end Buffalo's three-year reign atop the AFC East.

Last year the teams split their games with each side winning at home, both of them tight and taut affairs. And now, their rivalry will really emerge as Josh Allen will square off with Rodgers who joined the Jets in a trade last month.

Wednesday, the NFL announced its slate of five international games and the Buffalo Bills will be hosting the Jacksonville Jaguars on Sunday, Oct. 8, at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Kickoff is set bright and early at 9:30 a.m.

The Jaguars were also the Bills’ opponent in their only other international game. That occurred on Oct. 25, 2015 and Jacksonville was the home team with the game at Wembley Stadium.

The other international games are as follows:

  • Oct. 1: Falcons vs. Jaguars at London's Wembley Stadium

  • Oct. 15: Ravens vs. Titans at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium

  • Nov. 5: Dolphins vs. Chiefs at Germany's Frankfurt Stadium

  • Nov. 12: Colts vs. Patriots at Frankfurt Stadium

Home opponents at Highmark Stadium

Away opponents

Here is the official Bills' 2023 schedule:

Week 1 - Bills at Jets on Monday Night Football

Monday, Sept. 11, 8:15 p.m., ESPN/ABC

Buffalo will travel to MetLife Stadium to face Aaron Rodgers in his New York Jets debut at 8:15 p.m. on Sept. 11, the 22-year anniversary of 9/11. The Jets have lost in their last seven prime time games. Their last win was the 2018 season opener in Detroit which happened to be No. 3 overall draft pick Sam Darnold's NFL debut.

Week 2 - Raiders at Bills

Sunday, Sept., 17, 1 p.m., CBS

Week 3 - Bills at Commanders

Sunday, Sept. 24, 1 p.m., CBS

Week 4 - Dolphins at Bills

Sunday, Oct. 1, 1 p.m., CBS

Week 5 - Jaguars at Bills in London

Sunday, Oct., 8, 9:30 a.m., NFL Network

Week 6 - Giants at Bills on Sunday Night Football

Sunday, Oct. 15, 8:20 p.m., NBC

Most teams traditionally have a bye week after an international game to rest after extensive travel but it's not required by the NFL. Buffalo decided it prefers a bye week later in the season instead of mid-October.

Week 7 - Bills at Patriots

Sunday, Oct. 22, 1 p.m., CBS

Week 8 - Buccaneers at Bills on Thursday Night Football

Thursday, Oct. 26, 8:15 p.m., Prime Video

Week 9 - Bills at Bengals on Sunday Night Football

Sunday, Nov. 5, 8:20 p.m., NBC

The Bills-Bengals regular season game last year was canceled after Damar Hamlin collapsed due to commotio cordis on Jan. 2 and then Cincinnati ended Buffalo's season less than three weeks later in the AFC divisional round.

Week 10 - Broncos at Bills on Monday Night Football

Monday, Nov. 13, 8:15 p.m., ESPN

Week 11 - Jets at Bills

Sunday, Nov. 19, 4:25 p.m., CBS

Week 12 - Bills at Eagles

Sunday, Nov. 26, 4:25 p.m., CBS

Week 13 - Bye

Week 14 - Bills at Chiefs

Sunday, Dec. 10, 4:25 p.m., CBS

Week 15 - Cowboys at Bills

Sunday, Dec. 17, 4:25 p.m., FOX

Week 16: Bills at Chargers

Saturday, Dec. 23, 8 p.m., Peacock

Week 17: Patriots at Bills

Sunday, Dec. 31, 1 p.m., CBS

Week 18: Bills at Dolphins

Sunday, Jan. 17, time and TV channel TBD

Other NFL games

NFL season opener will be Lions at Chiefs

The now traditional NFL opener where the defending Super Bowl champion plays host on a Thursday night has been finalized, and the Detroit Lions will head to Arrowhead Stadium on Thursday, Sept. 7.

This is quite an interesting choice for the opener, choosing a Lions team that has been been in the playoffs since 2016. However, Detroit is considered an up and coming team and will have a chance to win the wide open NFC North.

Chiefs will get Christmas day started

The NFL’s Christmas day tripleheader will begin at 1 p.m. when the Chiefs host the Raiders at Arrowhead Stadium. The game will be on CBS, but an alternate broadcast will take place on Nickelodeon. So with the Eagles hosting the Giants in the middle game, we're still waiting word on the nightcap, so the Bills may still be in play for that.

AFC East Black Friday showdown on Amazon Prime

The Bills won’t be part of history when Amazon Prime debuts its first Black Friday game on Nov. 24, the day after Thanksgiving. Instead, the Dolphins will travel to New Jersey to take on the Jets at 3 p.m.

Fans will be able to stream the game for free from the web at amazon.com or by using the Prime Video app, which is available on phones, tablets, set-top boxes, game consoles, connected TVs, and on phones and tablets with NFL+.

Giants vs. Eagles part of Christmas tripleheader

Christmas falls on a Monday this season, so of course, the NFL will capitalize on that with three games, same as it did in 2022.

The middle of the three games will take place at Lincoln Financial Field between NFC East rivals New York and Philadelphia, kickoff set for 4:30 p.m.

Last year when Christmas fell on Sunday, the league played a normal Sunday schedule on Saturday, Dec. 24, then had three games on the holiday - Packers vs. Dolphins, Broncos vs. Rams and Buccaneers vs. Cardinals.

Chiefs vs. Bengals on New Years Eve

The NFL announced that the rematch of the 2022 AFC Championship Game between Kansas City and Cincinnati will take place at 4:25 p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 31 at Arrowhead Stadium.

Sal Maiorana can be reached at maiorana@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter @salmaiorana.To subscribe to Sal's newsletter, Bills Blast, which will come out every Friday during the offseason, please follow this link: https://profile.democratandchronicle.com/newsletters/bills-blast

This article originally appeared on Rochester Democrat and Chronicle: Buffalo Bills 2023 schedule leaks and release tracker